China Consumer Association Reports Record-Breaking Spring Festival Holiday in 2024
The Spring Festival holiday in 2024 was the longest in history, lasting for eight days, as reported by the China Consumers Association website. This normalized Spring Festival after the epidemic control period saw an unprecedented high willingness to consume among the public, leading to a hot tourism market. The holiday saw 2.293 billion people traveling across regions, showcasing the resilience of the holiday economy and the rapid release of consumption vitality.
During the eight-day Spring Festival holiday, there were 474 million domestic tourism trips in China, marking a 34.3% increase year-on-year and a 19.0% increase compared to the same period in 2019. Domestic tourists spent a total of 632.687 billion yuan on travel, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 47.3% and a 7.7% increase compared to the same period in 2019 on a comparable basis. The total box office for the 2024 Spring Festival surpassed 8 billion, with 162 million moviegoers and 3.836 million screenings, setting new records in Chinese film history.
The trend of returning to hometowns for reunions and then traveling with family during off-peak periods emerged as a new trend during the holidays. Activities such as annual customs travel, ice and snow travel, and island travel saw significant growth, driving up consumption. Notable increases were seen in cultural and tourism activities in various regions, with 5,108 large-scale events such as the Spring Festival Lantern Festival, flower markets, temple fairs, and dragon and lion dances. Harbin emerged as a popular ice and snow tourism destination, with a 106% year-on-year increase in cultural tourism consumption.
The China Consumers Association conducted an online big data public opinion analysis on consumer rights protection during the Spring Festival holiday. The analysis revealed that rights protection issues were more prevalent in areas such as transportation, scenic spot tourism, culture and entertainment, and consumer services. Public consumption confidence, willingness to consume, and spending power saw significant improvements in the new year.
However, the analysis also highlighted several challenges, including complaints about transportation, scenic spot tourism, culture and entertainment, and consumer services. Issues such as price fluctuations in air tickets, overcrowding on trains, forced shopping in tourist areas, and limited service levels in scenic spots were among the complaints.
To address these challenges, the China Consumers Association recommended focusing on improving multi-department collaboration, enhancing public service levels, and establishing a robust response mechanism. It emphasized the need for comprehensive policies to promote consumption, increased investment in education and training for service groups, and the establishment of effective response mechanisms to handle consumer complaints promptly.
The success of the 2024 Spring Festival holiday signals a positive trend in the economy, but addressing consumer rights protection issues and improving service levels will be crucial for sustaining this growth in the future.